Alpine Ski Center

So, this was a last minute ski trip at Sugar Mountain in Banner Elk, NC. Alpine Ski Center is just before you enter the Sugar Mountain Ski Resort. I FULLY recommend that you rent your skis off site. Not only was it convenient, it was FAST. NO WAITING!
Skis, poles and boots for a day rental was just at $ 20.00. I decided to insure those puppies because my skiing is actually classified more as a controlled fall instead of an athletic sport. $ 1.00 for insurance? You bet. Especially when the only thing they required is that you bring the ski stuff back. Doesn’t matter if you bring it back in a hundred pieces.
The snowboard rentals didn’t require a deposit like all the mountain resorts. Alpine doesn’t try and rip you off with a $ 400 deposit on rentals. They do enough business to take that risk themselves instead of passing it along to the American budgeting family, and I like that.
These guys know their stuff. They know that many coming through the door are amateurs and will probably mess something up. No worries.
I will be back and try out snowboarding this season. These dudes rocked! (And I rolled… down the mountain.)

This is one of several ski shops in Banner Elk near Sugar. This shop is a bit larger than the competition across the street. They don’t seem to have a much bigger selection when it comes to clothing though. I was looking for a jacket and although it was the end of the season they didn’t have much. Everything was on sale but I got a similar deal across the street.
The staff was friendly and helpful but didn’t seem to have the knowledge of other shops.